THIS WEEK,computer pioneer Alan Turing finally received an official apology from Gordon Brown over his prosecution for being gay.

To delve into his Wilmslow past, reporter Karen Britton tracked down the family who now live in his house and tell of the curious fans who visit to get a glimpse of the famous residence...

"COPPER Folly", on Adlington Road, built in 1854, was once home to legendary Second World War codebreaker Alan Turing.

Turing was a genius who both lived and – tragically- committed suicide within its hallowed walls, by eating a cyanide-laced apple after being prosecuted for being gay.

Current residents, the Coates family, feel they know the mathematician after hosting the hundreds of fans who have travelled the globe to turn up on their doorstep over the years.

And they have even changed the name of the house, from 'Holly Mead', back to its original moniker, in honour of his memory.

Dolly Coates, who has lived at the house with husband Mark and their two children for four years, said: "We knew the history of the house when we bought it – it makes it more interesting, and it's fascinating to hear people's stories.

"Alan Turing's apology was long overdue and it's good he's got some recognition."

Mark Coates added: "We get people hovering in the driveway and some who are braver and come up the drive to take pictures. And there are people like the film producers and novelists who knock on the door and ask to see the bedroom where Turing committed suicide.

"The house has a fabulous history and it's a great ice breaker,especially with colleagues who work in computer science."

The scientist, to whom the iconic bitten apple symbol of computer giant Apple is dedicated, is hailed as the founder of computer science and helped beat the Nazis by unlocking secret transmissions between German U-boats.”

But he fell apart after being prosecuted for gross indecency for having sex with a man in 1952.

He escaped jail after being offered an alternative of taking an experimental hormone treatment to reduce sex drive but committed suicide in 1954, aged just 41.

His apology came after a 30,000 signature-strong petition was issued to Downing Street, there are now plans to mark it with a celebration in Manchester's gay village and calls for a national monument.

Former occupier Diana Stephenson, who helped organise the blue plaque which is mounted on the house in Turing's memory, said: "The house was called Holly Mead when we bought it but we saw on the deeds it was originally Copper Folly which I thought was a fabulous name so we changed it.

"My theory is that the executors changed the name when Turing died because of what happened there. When I learned it was Turing's house I became fascinated.I lost count of how many visitors we had."

John Graham-Cumming, who led the apology campaign, said: "I'm deeply grateful to the Prime Minister for his heartfelt apology."